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YOU ARE
BOOK TWO
Copyright Š 2012 by Ashley Burrough. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available. ISBN-10: 0-8227-5420-7 Manufactured in the United States of America Designed by Ashley Burrough Distributed by Chronicle Books LLC. Chronicle Books LLC 680 Second Street San Francisco, California 94107 www.chroniclebooks.com
Life is not waiting for you while you wait to soak in whatever nourishment you think you need to face it. Life goes on being life. —Laura Horton
Your circumstances will never be absolutely ideal for doing everything as planned; there’s not enough time, money, or support, things get complicated;
you feel stuck, as though your opportunity has long been closed. Life can throw some disheartening blows, but you are not the prey of fate, nor the victim of circumstance.
You do not have to be someone, somewhere else to enjoy the fullest version of your life.
There are things to be loved, to be seen, and in need of being done where you are,
just as you are.
All of these things continue to quietly shine amidst your situation, waiting for you to adorn fresh eyes and experience them as they truly are.
turmoil YOUR INNER
Instead of saying of everyone and everything, “Why aren’t my needs being met?” We must ask “What are the needs of this person, place, or this particular situation, and what do I have to offer that can help to meet those needs?” When you take a proactive approach, you are empowering yourself and others as opposed to enabling excuses, apathy, or victimization that can easily occur when a person feels stuck or overwhelmed.
If you want something truly good in life,
you have to fight for it.
By actively choosing to make a positive impact on your circumstances you are learning and exercising your strengths while improving upon life within your area of influence.
If you only ever consider how things and people can help you, then everyone and everything you encounter will only be satisfying or valuable to a point. You will run from place to place, from one thing to the next until circumstances have forced you to be still.
Once you have been forced into
stillness, there will be no satisfaction or contentment; places will bore you, people will bother you, and things will annoy you to no end. What value is there in a life of that sort?
It is a kind of dead end, to be so inwardly selfseeking that you can’t see the light that illuminates all around you.
EVENTUALLY WE ARE ALL FORCED TO BECOME STILL— IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF
WHEN.
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Life has decided, if only for a season, that we will have no choice but to stay put and face life as it really is; all the bitter and sweet in one great wave.
OUR LIVES ARE NOT SOME SPINNING
MADNESS OF
CO LO R & L I GHTS LIKE WHAT YOU SEE WHEN RIDING A CARNIVAL RIDE OR A CAROUSEL.
Life is the ride; it is the view once all things have ceased to spin.
Ask yourself what you’ve been pushing aside or making excuses for each time it comes to mind. Begin, one task at a time, taking the steps to making those prolonged thoughts into a reality in the here and now.
anymore DON'T WAIT
OR CONVINCE YOURSELF that the door has closed. You can’t change what has already happened, but you can find satisfaction beyond allowing feelings, excuses, or obstacles to hold you back.
You must, with every ounce of strength that is in you, find your contentment where you are, and cease any kind of “grass is greener� mentality. If you are going to beg for greener grass, you must expect more rain.
mean SO WHAT DOES THAT
Your story is unique; you have talents and abilities that can truly enrich the lives of those around you. It simply means investing in the people you know and actually caring enough to ask, listen, experience, and to learn who they are; be it a family member, neighbor, or co-worker. Start with one or two people you find yourself around most often and ask how they are. How are their children, their significant other, their weekend; learn their story and life perspective.
Do not fear the vulnerability of investing in others. Life can be fragile, but also beautiful. That same beauty is offered in abundance when we extend an open hand to it by choosing to give and do instead of pitying, remaining apathetic, or constantly taking.
Take into account that great love and great achievements take
great risk.
—The Dali Lama
We cannot project our baggage of pains, regrets, or unfulfilled expectations onto the present moment of our lives, or we will filter everything through disappointment.
Choose to grow from the past, to not be hardened by it. Let it mold you and teach you to make better mistakes. Allow the very breath in your lungs to be a testament of great hope for the moment, filling you with every bit of boldness and strength you need to live and love well with the life you have now.
UNCOM MON ADVENTURE
for
THE COMMON BEING